I put this in the last blog I posted. It is so nice I had to post it twice. President Obama’s swearing in and inaugural speech.

I have heard there was some noise about the oath that our president took. It is proscribed in the constitution that the following words be said.

“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

The wording while it should be precise, does not Have to be. The wording of section one of the Twentieth Amendment in the case of succession is precise.

The terms of the President and Vice President shall end at noon on the 20th day of January, and the terms of Senators and Representatives at noon on the 3d day of January, of the years in which such terms would have ended if this article had not been ratified; and the terms of their successors shall then begin.

So, regardless of the oath taking, or wording thereof, it really is of no consequence, because the 20th amendment states that he simply is president, the moment his predecessor leaves office at noon on the 20th of January. Yes The last paragraph of section 1 of article two does state that “Before he enter on the execution of his office” he take the oath, the aforementioned section of the 20th amendment does in fact supercede Article one here. If it did not the point of the 20th amendment would be in question, and said amendment has not, and in this case to my knowledge , Is not being questioned.

So why the hype? People who don’t like the president, who questioned his legitimacy and citizenship, are simply giving voice to their displeasure at his presidency and will take every chance to demonize and belittle him and that which he does. Does it surprise you that they voice it here? It shouldn’t.

Still, it was nice that President Obama, conscious of the fact that people think the oath is truly important, and that since that is what they think, that makes it important, went out of his way, along with Cheif Justice John Roberts, to have himself sworn in a second time, despite the fact that it is, thanks to the 20th Amendment, entirely unnecessary.

It was great theatre though, wasn’t it?

I have also heard that there are people saying that Because the oath wasn’t administered until 12:04 pm, that for those 4 minutes that, because he hadn’t been sworn in yet, that for those 4 minutes, Condoleeza Rice was president of the United States.

The previous points about the 20th amendment stand here, but there is another reason that it wouldn’t work, even if you discount the reality the 20th amendment throws at you. She, at that point would have been 3rd in the line of succession. Ahead of her, in reverse order would have been the following. Senate President Pro Tempore Robert Byrd, Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, and Vice President Joe Biden, who was sworn in before President Obama was.

I just thought I would clear those little loose ends up for everyone. Those who questioned the legitimacy of the succession need only look to the constitution. It is a document of supreme importance. Read the damned thing once in a while.

Today’s Nuggets, via wikiquote: Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. President Barack Obama

There is in most Americans some spark of idealism, which can be fanned into a flame. It takes sometimes a divining rod to find what it is; but when found, and that means often, when disclosed to the owners, the results are often extraordinary. Justice Louis Brandeis

Like this:

Life is good. I am back on the road running again, injury free so far, and yes, I am crossing my fingers that it will stay that way. My wife is happy and while there isn’t as much money as I would like coming into Rhino manor, the bills are getting paid and there is food on the table. We have a new president, clearly a better leader than the last one. There are a lot of positives going on, both in my life and in the world.

Nice.

I was gonna bitch about Verizon still not getting my phone working after over two days, but bitching about it won’t make the situation any better. I was going to bark and yell about the stock market, but the same standard applies. What I am going to do is throw out a few quotes and get out of here and get to work as soon as I can.

Today’s nuggets, Via wikiquote: Honor is, or should be, the place of virtue and as in nature, things move violently to their place, and calmly in their place, so virtue in ambition is violent, in authority settled and calm. All rising to great place is by a winding stair; and if there be factions, it is good to side a man’s self, whilst he is in the rising, and to balance himself when he is placed. Sir Francis Bacon

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint. President Barack Obama